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Hanshin Tigers
Akinobu Okada (岡田 彰布, No. 80) | h_title=Home | h_cap=FFFF00 | h_pattern_cap=_blackcrown | h_leftarm=FFFFFF | h_pattern_la=_blackpinstripes | h_body=000000 | h_pattern_b=_baseball_pinstripes | h_rightarm=FFFFFF | h_pattern_ra=_blackpinstripes | h_pants=000000 | h_pattern_pants=_pinstripesonwhite | h_socks=000000 | a_cap=CCCCCC | a_pattern_cap=_blackcrown | a_leftarm=CCCCCC | a_pattern_la= | a_body=CCCCCC | a_pattern_b=_baseball | a_rightarm=CCCCCC | a_pattern_ra= | a_pants=000000 | a_pattern_pants=_beltongrey | a_socks=000000 }} The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team based in Koshien, Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and are in the Central League. Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd., the subsidiary of Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Inc., owns the Hanshin Tigers directly. It is the sister team of the American baseball team Detroit Tigers and in Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan's 2004 book Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season, the Tigers are often portrayed as the Japanese Red Sox. The team's circular logo is very similar to the classic Detroit Tigers logo, except the tiger in the Major Leagues version is orange, whereas Hanshin's is yellow. The Tigers' cap logo is very similar to that of the New York Yankees, and they are often seen with similar pinstriped uniforms. History of the Hanshin Tigers The Hanshin Tigers, one of the oldest professional clubs in Japan, were founded in 1935 with the team being formed in 1936. The team was first called the Ōsaka Tigers. In 1940, amid anti-foreign sentiment, the Tigers changed the name to Hanshin and in 1947 changed the name back to Ōsaka Tigers. The current team name was assumed in 1961. The Tigers won four titles before the establishment of the two league system in 1950. Since the league was split into the Central League and the Pacific League, the Tigers have won the Central League pennant five times (1962, 1964, 1985, 2003, 2005) and the Japan Series once (1985). When the 2004 Major League Baseball season opened in Japan, the Tigers played an exhibition game against the New York Yankees at the Tokyo Dome on March 29. The Tigers won 11–7. In each of 2005, 2006 and 2007, over 3 million people attended games hosted by the Tigers. The Tigers were the only one of the 12 Nippon Professional Baseball teams to achieve this. On January 31, 2007, the Tigers presented uniforms for the 2007 season. For the home uniforms, yellow, one of the colors of the team, was used again. The home field, Hanshin Kōshien Stadium, is used by high school baseball teams from all over Japan for play in the national championship tournaments in spring and summer. Famous players in Hanshin Tigers history include Randy Bass, Masayuki Kakefu, Minoru Murayama, Jeff Williams, and many others. Koshien Stadium The home field of the Tigers, Hanshin Koshien Stadium, is one of three major natural grass baseball stadiums in Japan. The others are the Hiroshima Municipal Ballpark (Hiroshima Toyo Carp), and Skymark Stadium in Kobe (part-time home of the newly-merged Orix Buffaloes). Of the three, only Skymark (Kobe) has grass on the infield as well as in the outfield. There are numerous smaller grass field ballparks around the country; Japanese baseball teams frequently play games in small cities so that local fans can see more of their heroes. Koshien Stadium is by far the oldest ballpark in Japan; built in 1924, the stadium was once visited by American baseball legend Babe Ruth on a tour of Major League stars in 1934. There is a monument commemorating this visit at the front gates of the park. Koshien is revered as a "sacred" ballpark, and players traditionally bow before entering and before leaving its hallowed field. The losing team in any high school baseball game played at the ballpark is allowed to scoop up handfuls of Koshien infield dirt, stuffing holy clay clods into tiny plastic bags as hordes of Japanese papparazzi snap photos at arm's length. Curse of the Colonel As with many other underachieving baseball teams, a curse is believed to lurk over the Tigers. After their 1985 Japan Series win, fans celebrated by having people who looked like Tigers players jump into the Dotonbori Canal. According to legend, because none of the fans resembled first baseman Randy Bass, fans grabbed a life-sized statue of Kentucky Fried Chicken mascot Colonel Sanders and threw it into the river (like Bass, the Colonel had a beard and was not Japanese). The statue was never recovered. Thus, the Tigers are said to be doomed never to win the season again until the Colonel is rescued from the river. In 2003, when the Tigers returned to the Japan Series after 18 years with one of the worst records in the Central League, many KFC outlets in Kōbe and Ōsaka moved their Colonel Sanders statues inside until the series was over to protect them from Tigers fans. Fandom Tigers fans are known as perhaps the most fanatical and dedicated fans in all of Japanese professional baseball. They often outnumber the home team fans at Tigers "away" games. Tigers fans also have a reputation for rough behavior and a willingness to brawl with other fans or with each other, although long fights are rare. A famous Tigers fan tradition is the release, by the fans, of hundreds of air-filled balloons immediately following the 7th inning stretch and the singing of the Tigers' fight song. This tradition is carried-out at all home and away games, except at games against the Yomiuri Giants in the Tokyo Dome due to the Giants' notoriously heavy-handed rules for behavior by visiting fans. The Tigers-Giants rivalry is considered the national Japanese rivalry, on par with the New York Yankees vs. the Boston Red Sox in Major League Baseball or Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona in Spanish football. " ", as known as "Rokko Oroshi" (The Wind of Mount Rokko), is a popular song in the Kansai area. It can even be found on karaoke boxes. Season-by-season From the guidebook. Players of note Current players * * * * * , Kentaro Sekimoto official website * * * , Tomoaki Kanemoto official website * , Makoto Imaoka official website * * , Atsushi Fujimoto official website * * * * * * * * * , Shinjiro Hiyama official website * * * * , Shinobu Fukuhara official website * * * * * * * * , Akihiro Yano official website * * * , Tsuyoshi Shimoyanagi official website * * * * * , Norihiro Akahoshi official website * , Jeff Williams supporters' website * * * * Former players * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * , died in 1992 * (藤田 平) * * * , died in 1987 * * * * * * * , Kei Igawa official website * * , died in 1945 * (掛布 雅之) - IF * (亀山 努, 亀山 つとむ) - OF Tsutomu Kameyama official website * , Atsushi Kataoka official website * * * * * * * * , died in 1986 * * * * * * * * , died in 1998 * * (Present: a coach for the Tigers) * (Present: the manager of the Tigers) * * * * * * , died in 1988 * * * * * * * * , (an umpire in the Central League) * * (Present: an outfielder for the Hokkaidō Nippon Ham Fighters) * * , Yutaka Wada official website * * * * * * * , (Present: a coach for the Tigers) * * * , Kyuji Fujikawa official website * Retired numbers * * * Media relating to the Tigers ;Newspapers :*Daily Sports (デイリースポーツ) :*Nikkan Sports (日刊スポーツ, Kansai edition) :*Sankei Sports (サンケイスポーツ, Kansai edition) :*Sports Nippon (スポーツニッポン, Kansai edition) ;Broadcasting stations :*SUN-TV (サンテレビ, TV) :*Asahi Broadcasting Corporation (ABC, 朝日放送, Radio, TV) :*Mainichi Broadcasting System, Inc. (MBS, 毎日放送, Radio, TV) :*Kansai Telecasting Corporation (KTV, 関西テレビ, TV) :*Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation (ytv, 読売テレビ, TV) :*Television Osaka, Inc. (TVO, テレビ大阪, TV) See also *Central League *Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group - Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd. External links *Hanshin Tigers official web site * Category:Baseball teams in Japan